Bear That Killed Goats Still On The Loose

A black bear scavenges for food beside tourists near the famous General Sherman tree at the Sequoia National Park in Central California on October 10, 2009. The Redwood trees which are native to California's Sierra Nevada Mountains are the world's largest by volume reaching heights of 274.9 feet (84.2 metres) and a ground level girth of 109 feet (33 metres). The oldest known Giant Sequoia based on it's ring count is 3,500 years old. AFP PHOTO/Mark RALSTON (Photo credit should read MARK RALSTON/AFP/Getty Images)File photo of a bear. (Photo credit: MARK RALSTON/AFP/Getty Images)

LAKE HELEN, Fla. (AP) — A Florida black bear suspected of killing eight goats is still on the lam after eluding a trap set by wildlife officials.

Wildlife officials removed the trap on Tuesday and pledged to help families in central Florida’s Lake Helen community with measures to keep bears away.

The Daytona Beach News-Journal reports the family that owned the goats had hoped for more. Ray Ojeda says his family has hardly slept since the goats were killed on July 31. It was the second time in month that a group of goats was killed in Lake Helen.

Mike Orlando, who helps run the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission’s bear program, says they got more than 6,000 calls about bears last year. They urge residents to keep garbage and pet food indoors.